The hall

The Hall

First impressions are always important, so it is vital to set the tone and atmosphere you want to create within the entrance to your home.

• You enter our home through a side door, which opens into an initial hall space that functions as a boot room and is also where our downstairs cloakroom is housed. Through an archway, you will find our main central hall.
• I like to think about hallway design as being like the centre of a wheel, with other rooms or 'the spokes' flowing off in different directions. It's the hub of the house and is a space you will pass through often as you journey from room to room.
• You can be slightly more experimental and bold with hallway design. I like to create an atmosphere by using unusual colours that I wouldn't necessarily use anywhere else.
• We have used a dining table as a console table to house a pair of statement lamps with a welcoming light and a collection of decorative objects to spark intrigue.
• Don't forget about storage for practical items such as keys.
• I would always recommend creating a well within your flooring so you can set a coir doormat within it so it's flush with the floor.
• Our floor is a French limestone, a choice influenced by our travels to Provence as well as how beautifully it sits with the exposed Cotswold stone walls. I would encourage you to always choose materials that work well with your local 'design vernacular', in order for your space to feel grounded and embedded into your surroundings.
• Consider using the same stone tile but in a different laying pattern within different rooms.
• If you are faced with level changes within your home, rather than viewing them as an obstacle, I like to celebrate and enjoy them. I love how steps can really zone different spaces and signify a change in feeling and atmosphere from room to room.
• Extra-wide doorways help to give a home a welcoming and inviting feel, as well as good flow - we went for 120cm door openings rather than your standard 80cm-90cm.

Sourcebook

• Ca'Pietra Artisans